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Regional leaders attend inauguration

    NAIROBI

    At his inauguration ceremony in Arta, Djibouti, broadcast live to Somalia, he pledged to stand against nepotism, injustice and tribalism. The guests at the ceremony included the presidents of Yemen, Sudan and Eritrea, and the prime minister of Ethiopia, officials from France, Italy, the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) and Arab governments.

    “The government will safeguard the rights of every Somali citizen giving special consideration to the rights of women and all other ill-treated ones,” said Hassan, whose victory was announced on Saturday after nearly 10 hours of voting which started on Friday evening. Hassan, was elected by the 245-member TNA set up by a peace conference sponsored by Djibouti which began in early May. Analysts in Arta told IRIN that on their return home, the president and the TNA faced the daunting task of persuading faction leaders opposed to the peace process to respect them.

    France and Italy, Hassan said in a speech on Monday, “have promised provide emergency assistance for us as soon as we complete the formation of our transitional authority”. The aid would form part of European Union development assistance under the Lome Agreement which had been frozen since Somalia lost its administration in 1991. He also urged the Arab League, scheduled to meet in Cairo on Sunday, for similar backing.

    [For full interview: IRIN Interview with President Abdiqassim Salad Hassan.
    See also
    SOMALIA: IRIN Profile of Somalia’s new president

    http://www.reliefweb.int/IRIN/cea/countrystories/somalia/20000826.phtml

    SOMALIA: IRIN Feature report on a town lending itself to Somali history

    http://www.reliefweb.int/IRIN/cea/countrystories/somalia/20000825b.phtml

    SOMALIA: IRIN Focus on the task facing the new transitional authority

    http://www.reliefweb.int/IRIN/cea/countrystories/somalia/20000828.phtml]

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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